On Sun, 21 Sep 2008 20:22:53 +0100, Rob wrote: >My primary goal: to know whether the users were able to fulfill their tasks >(register for the event, find essential information and show contacts) with >ease online. If possible I'd also like to observe general consensus on >visual offerings - whether the look and feel was appropriate for this market >or what was expected by them. > >I'd like to get honest feedback and worried that lab-like conditions might >put users off during a busy show day. > >I'm no specialist in this field (user research) so welcome any advise. >Please bear in mind that I'm limited with resource and time and will be >floating around the show floor for one day only.
Rob, I'd imagine that doing what you're suggesting is better than nothing, but you'll get more from having the site in front of you. If you are on a conference floor, and you've got a laptop with the site in front of you on a table, you can get some very quick feedback, and I don't see why it would feel like a lab. Some rough rules of thumb, that others might care to add to - don't ask leading questions - record unobstrusively if you can, and listen again later (or use recording software on the laptop to review the session) - ask permission - listen carefully - understand the main uses of the site for the users - have some specific tasks in mind that you want to test - if you're not recording, make notes immediately after (doing so whilst talking or listening to someone can seem rude and you miss visual cues) also, if you already have some ideas that you think might improve the site, why not show those at the same time? If you do a screen mockup, you can show it on the laptop too, and get some reaction. I'd suggest you don't limit yourself to people who have already used the site, but do check that they are the type of person who would in principle use it. You could even ask people if they would be willing to provide feedback in the future - assuming that they are local enough to you (or you could do something over the phone), especially if you can offer some incentives. If it's the official conference site, maybe they can get a discount next time in return for feedback. * Nick Gassman - Usability and Standards Manager - http://ba.com * ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
